Electric conductor



March 1, 1949. M F PETERS ET AL 2,462,993

ELECTRIC CONDUCTOR Filed March 21, 1945 IN VEN TOR.

MELVILLE F PETERS AND JOHN J. PHILLIPS A GEN T Patented Mar. 1, 1949 ELECTRIC CONDUCTOR Melvilie F. Peters, Beltsvillc, Md., and John J. Phillips, Irvington, N. J., assignors, by mesne assignments, to Titeflox, Inc., Newark, N. J., a corporation of Delaware Application March 21, 1945, Serial No. 583,963

2 Claims. 1

This invention relates to improvements in electric conductors. In particular, it is concerned with means to associate a laminated flat strip type conductor both electrically and mechanically with another conductor or with an element of an electrical system in which the conductor is employed.

Various advantages are observed in the use of laminated flat strip conductors when compared to stranded wire conductors of circular cross section. The advantages result principally from fact that light metals as aluminum or alloys of aluminum may be used having equal perimeter but which are of lesser weight than equivalents in heavier metals of circular section to satisfy given electrical requirements. On aircraft this is particularly desirable where weight reduction is a factor of extreme importance,

The problem f fastening and interconnecting flat strip conductors, however, is more complex than that for circular section conductors which, by their configuration, are adaptable to be locked or otherwise fixed in drilled or otherwise formed holes to make a satisfactory electrical connection.

Accordingly it is an object of this invention to provide an improved means for mechanically fastening flat strip conductors and to provide for electrical association of the conductor with the material to which it is fastened. A further object is to provide a fastening for flat strip conductors which will not tear or break the conductor when assembled thereto and which will permit mechanical stresses on the conductor when installed in a circuit.

With these and. other objects in view which will be apparent throughout the description, the invention resides in the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts substantially as hereinafter described and more particularly defined by the appended claims, it being understood that such changes in the precise embodiment of the invention may be made as come within the scope of the claims.

In the drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal elevation view of a length of fiat strip conductor employing our invention;

Figure 2 is a cross section view taken along the lines 22 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a longtiudinal elevation view showing the association of two flat conductors employing my invention;

Figure 4 is a side view of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a fragmentary side View of a flat strip conductor fastened to an element other than another flat strip conductor.

Flat strip conductor [0 shown in the drawings comprises multiple thin rectangular section laminations l8, l5", iil', lll" associated with each other in electrical contact. The cross sectional area of each individual lamination and also the number of laminations used in the flat strip conductor are a function of the electrical requirements of a particular application. It is desirable that the width and thinness of the lamination be such that the conductor will be permitted to flex longitudinally for ease of installation.

The material used in flat strip conductors for conservation of weight is preferably aluminum or another light weight metal. A flat strip conductor of this style includes a lesser volume of conducting material than a conductor of circular cross section for an equal perimeter and is valuable because of the increased heat radiation possibility. Laminations are used rather than a single thickness of material in flat strip conductors to improve the life of the conductor under conditions of vibration.

Surrounding the conductor it is shown the insulating tape it? which is helicaliy wound with overlapping edges and lacquered or otherwise given surface treatment required depending upon the type of application. In the event that higher voltages and therefore higher dielectric properties are required of the insulation, this may be of molded construction or the insulation may be tubed over the conductor in a similar manner to the procedure in connection with the insulation of circular or stranded conductors.

In applying the connecting arrangements which constitute the more important phase of my invention, the flat strip conductor is cared for a short distance from its end as in the usual practice of electrical conductors for cable insulation. Figure 1 shows this detail where the insulating covering terminates and the fiat strip conductor projects from the insulation a relatively short distance from the end of the conductor.

In the proximity of the end of the bared conductor and in an aperture provided, a flanged, hollow metal tubular member, preferably of a material having greater tensile strength than the conductor itself, is assembled with the conductor. The operation of assembling the flanged metal tube to the flat strip conductor may follow a similar method to that used for attaching metal eyelets to paper or cardboard. A circular aperture is first punched or drilled in the flat conductor after which a flanged hollow tube I4 is inserted in the aperture having aacaeee one flange it preformed to abut the outside surface of the flat conductor. A subsequent forming operation produces a lower flange 16' resulting in an effective clamp around the periphery of the hole in the conductor of strong rigid material. At the same time the central hole IS in the tube permits the association therewith of fastening devices about to be described.

An conventional eyeletting tools may be utilized such as a mandrel and punch combination for applying the tube to the conductor. In any substantial production automatic eyeletting machines which are also well known in industry may be employed. Figures 3 and 4 show the association of two flat strip conductors Where flanged tubes i i and it are associated with conductor ends and where a conventional hexagon head cap screw i3 and nut 20 are used to maintain the conductors together. As shown in Figure 4, disk washers it may be employed to further secure this connection.

If it is desirable that the fiat strip conductor be fastened to a bus bar or to any other metallic conductor used with an electrical device, the flanged tube may be used in associating parts as with a threaded stud i8 screwed into the tapped hole 20' in the bus bar 21, Figure 5.

The resulting connection effected by this construction makes a convenient and uniform means of fastening a conductor with another conductor or with any other electrical .unit. In addition, the flanged metal tube presents the wearing quality of the material of which it is constructed rather than the poorer wearing material of the laminated strips and provides a reinforced hole serving to maintain the laminations of the flat conductor in close association. As such, the conductor is not liable to tear under stress as would be the case if a connecting stud were inserted directly in the light weight metal itself.

While we have indicated and described an arrangement for carrying our invention into effect, it will be apparent that it is not limited to the particular shape of cable shown and described or the particular style of flanged tube, but that many modifications may be made in the size and shape of parts, sheath, and insulation without departing from the scope of our invention.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An electrical conductor comprisin flat laminations made of material having a high coefficient of expansion and low elastic limit and having aligned openings therein, a resilient, tubular member made of metal having greater tensile strength than the laminations and extending through the aligned openings, and flanges integrally connected to opposite ends of the tubular member, at least one of said flanges contacting with the outer surface of an outside lamination around a region of the surface that is spaced from the opening through that lamination, the portion of the flange inward of said region being spaced from the outside surface of the outside lamination to leave a clearance under the flange over the surface area that is surrounded by the region of contact.

2. An electrical conductor comprising a group of superimposed flat laminations with aligned apertures, an eyelet extending through said apertures, said eyelet having flanges at both ends in contact with the outer surfaces of the outer laminations on opposite sides of the conductor, the eyelet having a longitudinal axis substantially coincident with the aligned axes of the apertures, and said eyelet having both its inner and outer surfaces curved in any plane containing the axis of the eyelet, the curved surfaces having between them a section of the eyelet that has at least a portion of its extent spaced from the laminations and free to bend, and that is stressed to serve as a spring for holding the laminations in firm contact with one another.

MELVILLE F. PETERS. JOHN J. PHILLIPS.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 710,532 Sprague Oct. 7, 1902 1,181,250 Renshaw May 2, 1916 1,588,556 Thompson June 15, 1926 2,074,810 Sabol Mar. 23, 1937 2,081,047 Basch May 18, 1937 2,092,505 Gort Sept. 7, 1937 2,274,422 Mahoney Feb. 24, 1942 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 124,320 Great Britain Mar. 27, 1919 

